IkunaWhat is a Context Manager?
A context manager saves and restores your complete work setup as one named unit. Here is a clear definition, and how it differs from window managers, workspace managers, and app launchers.
Context manager
A context manager is software that saves a complete work context, the right applications, browser tabs, and window layout, as a single named unit, and restores it on demand. Switching into a project rebuilds its full environment in seconds, instead of opening everything by hand.
The term comes from how the brain actually works. A task is not just an app. It is a context: the set of tools, references, and on-screen state that holds the work in your head. When you switch tasks, that context has to be rebuilt, and the cost of rebuilding it is where most of the lost time goes.
A context manager treats that whole set as one object. You save it once, give it a name, and bring it back with a single action. The category exists because the parts of a workspace, apps, tabs, and layout, were always managed separately, and switching between projects meant reassembling them every time.
How it differs from related tools
The terms overlap in everyday use, but they solve different problems. The clearest distinction is whether the tool manages live windows or persistent context.
| Tool | What it does | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Context manager | Saves and restores full work context: apps, tabs, and layout as a named unit | Switching into a project and rebuilding its whole environment on demand |
| Window manager | Arranges or tiles windows that are already open | Snapping live windows into a clean layout right now |
| Workspace manager | Broad term, often overlaps with context manager; may focus on layout or resources | Saving project setups, with varying support for tabs and layout |
| App launcher | Opens a predefined list of apps and URLs you configure by hand | Quickly opening a fixed set of tools, without capturing live state |
The key line is between live and persistent. A window manager works on what is open now. A context manager works on what should come back later. They are complementary: many people run a window manager for moment-to-moment tiling and a context manager for switching between whole projects.
When you need a context manager
You work across more than two projects, each with its own apps and tabs. You lose time rebuilding setups when you switch. You restart your Mac and the right windows do not come back. If any of these is a daily friction, the persistent save and restore of a context manager is the fix.
If you reopen the same set of apps and tabs every time you return to a project, that set should be a saved context.
When a window manager is enough
If you mostly work in one project and just want your open windows arranged neatly, a window manager or Stage Manager covers it. The need for a context manager appears when projects multiply and switching between them becomes the bottleneck.
If your problem is "my windows are messy" rather than "I keep rebuilding setups," a tiler is the lighter answer.
Ikuna as a context manager
Ikuna is a context manager for macOS. Each saved context is called an Ikuna and holds the full setup for one project or mode.
- Full context capture: apps, browser tabs, and window layout saved as one named unit.
- Restore in under 3 seconds: one shortcut rebuilds the entire environment across monitors.
- Focus metrics: see how often you switch context and where your time actually goes.
- Works alongside window managers and Stage Manager: persistent context plus live tiling, no conflict.
Native macOS · Local data · Built in EU
Common questions
How is a context manager different from a window manager?
A window manager arranges windows that are already open. A context manager saves which apps and tabs make up a project and brings them back after everything is closed. One manages live layout, the other manages persistent context.
Is a context manager the same as a workspace manager?
They overlap heavily. Workspace manager is the broader, more common term. Context manager emphasises restoring the full context of a task, including browser tabs, rather than only the window arrangement.
Do I need a context manager if I use Stage Manager?
Stage Manager groups live windows but does not save a named project setup you can quit and restore. A context manager adds that persistent layer, so the two work well together.